As any Passive House homeowner knows, you can open your windows and doors whenever you want. The mechanical ventilation is delivering fresh, filtered, pre-warmed (or cooled) air 24/7 which means opening windows is not required for indoor air quality (IAQ). Not that New Zealanders are very good at that anyway. But there are two specific circumstances in which it’s important …
Making certified Passive House tradesperson training even better
Ideas on how to make certified Passive House tradespersons training even better: that’s one of the things I took away from the THRIVE 2024 Passivhaus Conference in Melbourne. UK architect Julia Bennett gave a presentation called “Tackling Challenges in Passivhaus construction: Notes from the UK” and given Sustainable Engineering Ltd delivers training to the Passive House community in New Zealand, …
Highlights from the 2024 Thrive Passivhaus Conference
The Thrive 2024 Passivhaus Conference in Melbourne last week was great—here are my highlights. It was well worth nipping across the ditch for two days. (Was I really the only person from New Zealand in attendance?) I estimate there were about 320 people there, plus those at the trade show, a big turnout. Here were the top three sessions for …
NZGBC lays out emissions reductions through better buildings
NZ Green Building Council’s latest report is well worth reading. In my view, the policy changes it recommends are easy (we could do more). Buildings are capable of delivering about a third of the carbon emission reduction that New Zealand is required to do—the government signed agreements and those commitments are now part of our trade agreements. If we choose …
World’s smallest Passive House building?
What and where is the world’s smallest certified Passive House building? I was asked this question today and didn’t know the answer. It turns out my guess was way off. Sustainable Engineering recently certified a New Zealand Passive House project that checks in at just 61.5m2 of Treated Floor Area (TFA). The question about the world’s smallest was asked by …
The right filter matters in your MVHR system
MVHR systems are great but they need the right filters and the right maintenance to do their job well. I draw your attention to a useful article published by Scottish ventilation consultancy and design service, Paul Heat Recovery. Filters remove various pollutants like dust, pollen, smoke and other particulates, making sure the air circulated inside buildings is clean and fresh. …
There are lots of different reasons why people build Passive House homes
What motivates people and organisations to build better homes? And how do they afford them? It was interesting to chat with Architype principal Tim Ross this week about the Arthur Street townhouse project (see the case study here). This home stands out for being built-to-rent. It’s in Dunedin, a climate badly in need of warm, dry housing. It also features …
Is Passive House actually worth it?
I’m often asked (usually politely): Is building to the Passive House standard actually worth it? Yes it is, is the unequivocal answer. There’s a brilliant summary paper written by Dr Ürge-Vorsatz and others that is my go-to evidence when I am persuading sceptics. The bottom line is that with current technology, we can build nearly zero-energy buildings almost anywhere at …
Build better houses to solve dry year energy problem
Newsflash: using less energy is better than generating more of it. I know that seems obvious given the cost of new electricity generation schemes but it’s even more significantly beneficial to reduce peak heating demand because of New Zealand’s big dry winter problem. The University of Otago’s energy programme is producing valuable work, and its latest paper by Michael Jack …